Advocacy Update #9 - February 25, 2025

In this issue:

• BC Legislature Opens First Session of 43rd Parliament with Speech from the Throne
• Letter Submitted to the Housing Minister Advocating for DCC Deferrals
• Are You Ready for BC Building Code changes effective March 10, 2025?

BC Legislature Opens First Session of 43rd Parliament with Speech from the Throne

The BC Legislature opened its first session of the 43rd Parliament this week with a Throne Speech delivered by newly appointed Lieutenant Governor Wendy Cocchia. While the government placed emphasis on the threat of US tariffs and their potential economic impacts, new commitments on housing were notably scarce and primarily consisted of reannouncements under the Homes for People plan, grouped alongside broader issues like healthcare and consumer protection.

While we welcomed the continued focus on affordability, it was disappointing to see a lack of new measures to address critical challenges to building housing supply. As we monitor the progress of the legislative session, CHBA BC’s focus will be to continue to raise housing to the forefront of policymakers’ agendas, keeping it top of mind throughout the legislative process.

Letter Submitted to the Housing Minister Advocating for DCC Deferrals

On February 14, HAVAN and CHBA BC submitted a joint letter to the Minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs, advocating for legislative changes to the Local Government Act (LGA) to enable the deferral of development cost charge (DCC) payments to final occupancy. The letter outlines the following recommendations:

1. Allow local governments to defer DCC payments for developments until final occupancy;
2. Extend in-stream protections for DCCs and ACCs;
3. Review and revise minimum assist factors to ensure fairer distribution of infrastructure costs between current and future residents of a community; and
4. Encourage annual inflationary increases by Consumer Price Index (CPI).

The letter is intended to highlight the growing support from municipalities and industry alike for delayed DCC collection, which would help more projects move forward. Most notably, the City of Delta recently passed a motion in support of delayed DCC collection, citing stalled residential development activity as a major factor.

Are You Ready for BC Building Code changes effective March 10, 2025?

Projects for which building permits are applied for on or after March 10, 2025, are subject to new code requirements coming into effect on March 10, 2025. CHBA BC will issue a separate email reminder with details – stay tuned.

CHBA shares what’s needed to keep homebuilding alive if tariffs come into effect.

PIBC is hosting a free webinar, Proactive Planning for Big Needs in Small and Medium-Size Communities, on Wednesday, February 26 from 12:00 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. Speakers from several small and medium-size communities will share how they are undertaking proactive planning and confronting the interdependencies of housing demand and development, infrastructure, amenities, and funding. In addition, one speaker will serve as the ‘Lawyer-in-Residence’ to offer general legal perspectives throughout the session. Register here.

The Pembina Institute is researching the systemic barriers building owners, developers and industry members face when electrifying heating systems in existing buildings in various regions of British Columbia. Complete the short, ten-minute survey by February 28 here.

CMHC states housing starts are up 3% in January, but trade risks add ‘significant uncertainty’. Meanwhile, another report from CMHC shows that soaring housing costs are limiting population mobility across Canada.

Too many rules? Statistics Canada report finds that cutting red tape could boost Canada’s economy.

A new Leger poll suggests if Mark Carney wins the Liberal leadership race, it would erase the massive lead the Conservatives have enjoyed for the past year and a half.

This newsletter is exclusive for Canadian Home Builders' Association of BC (CHBA BC) members. If a colleague would like to subscribe, please have them update their contact information with their local association. For questions, feel free to contact Jenny Scott, Director of Policy and Government Relations, or Pauline Rupp, Director of Technical and Building Innovation.